Arts & Culture Newsletter: San Diego International Film Fest returns By David L. Coddon October 11, 2024 at 1:52 p.m. Also this week, a Latino storytelling festival, Soulkiss Theater's '2 Rappers, 2 Plays,' Art of...
Documentary follows homecoming of wild buffalo to Blackfeet Reservation after more than a century of disconnection and colonialism By Lisa Deaderick October 6, 2024 at 6:02 a.m. This massive expanse of land was their home, where they were with family, until they...
Music and Concerts | Paul McCartney & Wings 1974 film to screen Saturday. These are the San Diego-area theaters where you can watch it. By George Varga September 24, 2024 at 10:04 a.m. "One Hand Clapping" will make its cinematic debut, 50 years late, on Saturday. It will...
Movies | James Earl Jones, acclaimed actor and voice of Darth Vader, dies at 93 By Associated Press September 10, 2024 at 6:35 a.m. James Earl Jones, who overcame racial prejudice and a severe stutter to become a celebrated...
S.D. Arts & Culture Newsletter: Actor is ‘Fully Committed’ to challenging stage role By David L. Coddon September 5, 2024 at 6:01 a.m. This week, San Diego's LGBTQ festival FilmOut, the San Diego Beatles Fair, 'Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice' and...
Arts & Culture Newsletter: Casbah music club at 35 is happy to stay put By David L. Coddon August 29, 2024 at 5:30 a.m. Also this week: San Diego Symphony's Tchaikovsky Spectacular, Chicago, Shakespeare and more
‘Blink Twice’ delivers searing commentary and impressive direction, despite spattering of clichés By Noah Lyons August 23, 2024 at 6:00 a.m. Zoe Kravitz’s directorial debut is sure to thrill audiences and spark conversation
Arts & Culture Newsletter: San Diego Symphony to celebrate Sondheim By David L. Coddon August 22, 2024 at 5:31 a.m. This week: Rapper Common in Del Mar, film fests for both children and cat fans,...
Review: Documentary ‘Sugarcane’ is a harrowing, essential watch By Noah Lyons August 13, 2024 at 12:30 p.m. The story follows investigations around Indigenous killings at federally-funded boarding schools
Entertainment | S.D. Arts & Culture Newsletter: ’35MM: A Musical Exhibition’ opens in Mission Valley By David L. Coddon August 8, 2024 at 8:51 a.m. Also this week, Poway filmmaker's 'Scuba' now streaming, HIllcrest's CityFest returns, Edinburgh Fringe goes online...
Arts and Culture Newsletter: San Diego Paralympian profiled in ‘Power of Sports’ documentary By Pam Kragen August 1, 2024 at 5:30 a.m. Also this week, a book on the Sagon Penn case, the Midway Museum's 20 millionth...
Marvel reclaims its mojo with ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ and the return of Robert Downey Jr. By Cnn Com Wire Service July 30, 2024 at 7:46 a.m. Slumping movie studio, which made a headline-making trip to San Diego Comic-Con last weekend, is...
‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ is here to shake up the Marvel Cinematic Universe By Lindsey Bahr July 26, 2024 at 9:35 a.m. The film's co-stars, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, are expected, but not confirmed, for Saturday's...
Arts and Culture Newsletter: SDMA opens ‘American Agitator’ exhibition By David L. Coddon July 30, 2024 at 9:38 a.m. SDMA opens 'American Agitator,' 'Batman' screening, Cracker, Lea Salonga, Mel Brooks and 'Blazing Saddles,' Comic-Con...
Things to do | Comic-Con: 13 things to see or do this week at Comic-Con By Peter Larsen July 24, 2024 at 1:44 p.m. We did a deep dive into the Comic-Con schedule to pick some offerings that appealed...
Things to do | Comic-Con 2024: 26 things you need to know By Michael James Rocha July 23, 2024 at 1:16 p.m. The county's largest convention arrives Wednesday with thousands of events, exhibitors, appearances and vendors. Here...
Arts and Culture Newsletter: Broadway’s Ben Platt, Bayfest, KT Tunstall, ‘Pulp Fiction’ and more By David L. Coddon July 18, 2024 at 5:31 a.m. Also in this week's arts newsletter: San Diego Bayfest, KT Tunstall, "Pulp Fiction," Buzz Aldrin...
SUBSCRIBER ONLY Things to do | TV, movie stars and other celebrities to expect in San Diego for Comic-Con By Carlos Rico July 18, 2024 at 10:31 a.m. Stars of some of the biggest TV shows and films will arrive in San Diego...
Star Trek actors George Takei and John Cho to discuss science of storytelling at UCSD By Gary Robbins July 17, 2024 at 2:05 p.m. The event is tied to this year's Comic-Con convention, which begins next week in downtown...
Leonardo DiCaprio movie filming in San Diego seeks Latinx actors By Pam Kragen July 13, 2024 at 3:29 p.m. The Warner Bros. film 'BC PROJECT' is hiring San Diego background actors for a movie...
Economy | Expect more star power at San Diego Comic-Con this year By Phillip Molnar July 6, 2024 at 6:11 a.m. San Diego Comic-Con is expected to have Hollywood actors this year, after none in 2023
S.D. Arts and Culture Newsletter: Need nostalgia for July 4th? Check out ‘American Graffiti’ on Netflix By David L. Coddon July 4, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. Good morning, and welcome to the U-T Arts & Culture Newsletter. I’m David L. Coddon,...
Family’s discovery of rare T. rex fossil the subject of film in San Diego By The New York Times News Service Syndicate June 29, 2024 at 10:04 a.m. A documentary about a North Dakota family's discovery of a rare T. Rex fossil is...
Arts and Culture Newsletter: 'Women Work Together' in new exhibit By David L. Coddon June 20, 2024 at 6:01 a.m. Good morning, and welcome to the U-T Arts & Culture Newsletter. I’m David L. Coddon,...
Arts and Culture Newsletter: Local filmmaker brings award-winning film home By David L. Coddon June 13, 2024 at 2:02 p.m. Good morning, and welcome to the U-T Arts & Culture Newsletter. I’m David L. Coddon,...
Things to do | Drum giant Antonio Sanchez on ‘Birdman’ tour after album with Trent Reznor, Dave Matthews and Pat Metheny By George Varga April 12, 2024 at 1:01 p.m. How big an impact can a film that wins four Oscars have on someone who...
Things to do | San Diego Writers Festival to host film director Ed Zwick, whose new Hollywood memoir tells all By Rick Kogan March 31, 2024 at 1:01 p.m. On a recent Friday night, Jim Belushi walked into a high-rise apartment in Chicago and...
Things to do | Blue Water Film Festival washes ashore this weekend at theaters countywide By Ashley Mackin-Solomon March 22, 2024 at 1:01 p.m. The fifth annual Blue Water Film Festival has come ashore in San Diego this weekend,...
Things to do | World War II drama a poignant reminder of how far goodness can extend By Katie Walsh March 14, 2024 at 7:40 p.m. The cinematic image of children boarding trains in World War II is typically a traumatic...
Things to do | Oscars preview: Here’s what’s new and how to watch the 2024 Academy Awards By Associated Press March 8, 2024 at 2:03 a.m. After a winter barrage of award shows — the Emmys, the Golden Globes, the Grammys...
Things to do | Who will win at this year’s Oscars? Critics make their picks By Jake Coyle March 8, 2024 at 2:03 a.m. Ahead of the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, Associated Press film writers Jake Coyle...
Things to do | Fourth time is not the charm for Dreamworks’ animated martial arts franchise By Katie Walsh March 8, 2024 at 1:57 a.m. The “Kung Fu Panda” movies have always been a reliable name when it comes to...
Things to do | Animated docu-drama investigates life and mysterious death of famed Brazilian musician By Michael Phillips March 8, 2024 at 1:56 a.m. Attention, fans of samba, bossa nova and ambitious nonfiction/fiction hybrids, animated division: Here is a...
Things to do | Is this the best year ever for Best Picture nominees? We put it to the test By Glenn Whipp March 3, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. Ever since the motion picture academy super-sized the Oscars' best picture category up from five...
Entertainment | Australian film delicately explored harrowing story of domestic abuse and escape By Lindsey Bahr April 5, 2024 at 5:59 p.m. Noora Niasari’s delicately moving “Shayda” puts the viewer in the shoes of an Iranian woman...
Entertainment | Wildly absurdist ‘Problemista’ offers funny, original take on the immigrant experience By Mark Kennedy February 27, 2024 at 10:56 p.m. The hero of “Problemista” sees the world differently. He's an aspiring toy designer named Alejandro...
Things to do | Disney’s ‘Mandalorian & Grogu’ to shoot in California thanks to huge tax credit By Christi Carras February 27, 2024 at 2:35 p.m. This is the way to persuade Disney to shoot the next “Star Wars” movie in...
Things to do | Oscar nominee Robert Downey Jr.: the secret weapon in ‘Oppenheimer’ By Robert Ito February 25, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. Christopher Nolan and Robert Downey Jr. have each worked on some of the most lucrative...
Things to do | Da’Vine Joy Randolph: Major prizes, major attention, major unease By Kyle Buchanan February 27, 2024 at 3:54 a.m. The “Holdovers” star Da’Vine Joy Randolph has had a charmed run through awards season so...
Things to do | 100 years of memories at the Balboa Theatre: Centennial gala set for late March By Pam Kragen February 28, 2024 at 4:58 p.m. At 6 p.m. March 28, 1924, the Balboa Theatre celebrated its grand opening at the...
Things to do | ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ trashy fun, but also exceedingly disposable By Katie Walsh February 23, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. It’s fascinating that Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke, longtime filmmaking collaborators and spouses, and the...
Things to do | ‘Dune: Part Two’ sustains the dystopian dream of ‘Part One’ By Jake Coyle February 23, 2024 at 7:47 p.m. Three firm thumps into the Arrakis sand is all you need to summon a sandworm...
Things to do | This week’s Oceanside International Film Festival to feature La Jollan’s ‘cringey’ comedy movie By Ashley Mackin-Solomon February 18, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. La Jolla filmmaker Tony Olmos' latest film is part political satire, part dystopian adventure —...
Things to do | Movie Review: Dakota Johnson is fun enough, but ‘Madame Web’ is repetitive and messy By Lindsey Bahr February 13, 2024 at 7:35 p.m. There is a lot of pretty niche comic book mythology swirling around “Madame Web,” the...
Things to do | Hillman Grad studio aims to give marginalized TV and film artists their big break By J. Clara Chan February 11, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. At a time when studios are zeroing in on existing intellectual property and tried-and-true storylines...
Things to do | In ‘Dune: Part Two,’ filmmaker Denis Villeneuve realizes a lifetime dream By Lindsey Bahr February 16, 2024 at 11:03 p.m. LOS ANGELES — Denis Villeneuve doesn’t feel like he came back to Arrakis for “Dune: Part Two.”...
Things to do | Movie review: The flavors of love: ‘The Taste of Things’ a delectable blend of food, romance By Katie Walsh February 9, 2024 at 2:30 p.m. It starts humbly, a gnarled turnip emerging from the soil in the early morning light;...
Things to do | Dead on arrival: There’s nothing animated about corpse comedy ‘Lisa Frankenstein’ By Ann Hornaday February 9, 2024 at 2:01 p.m. The equal parts forgettable and regrettable teen comedy “Lisa Frankenstein” stars Kathryn Newton — best...
Things to do | ‘One Love’ doesn’t serve reggae icon’s legacy well By Jake Coyle February 8, 2024 at 10:42 p.m. Bob Marley was born in 1945, the son of an 18-year-old mother and a much...
Things to do | ‘The Promised Land’ a sweeping Nordic Western epic By Katie Walsh February 2, 2024 at 1:27 a.m. Nikolaj Arcel’s “The Promised Land” is aptly titled. Adapted from the novel “The Captain and...
Things to do | San Diego International Jewish Film Festival to kick off with film about one-hand pianist John Bayless By Wire Reports January 30, 2024 at 6:07 p.m. The 2024 San Diego International Jewish Film Festival gets under way this week with 30...
Things to do | ‘Miller’s Girl’ with Jenna Ortega is an airless, cold affair that fails to spark By Mark Kennedy January 25, 2024 at 9:40 p.m. Jenna Ortega's stark rise as Gen Z's goth-glam princess takes a pointless, awkward turn in...
Things to do | In ‘I.S.S.,’ war on Earth disrupts life aboard the International Space Station By Jake Coyle January 18, 2024 at 9:21 p.m. With war raging in Ukraine and U.S.-Russia relations below freezing, the Cold War movie may...
Things to do | Ava DuVernay’s ‘Origin’ is a powerful, artful, interpretation of ‘Caste’ By Lindsey Bahr January 25, 2024 at 9:42 p.m. Words like “important” and “vital” are thrown around possibly a little too much in film...
Things to do | In the bonkers ‘The Beekeeper,’ Jason Statham has more than a bee in his bonnet By Jake Coyle January 11, 2024 at 9:42 p.m. Secret agents and murderous assassins seem to lurk in increasingly mundane places. Remember “The Accountant"...
Things to do | Still trying to make ‘fetch’ happen, now in song: ‘Mean Girls’ gets a musical update By Jocelyn Noveck January 11, 2024 at 9:45 p.m. The first “Mean Girls,” that compulsively watchable high-school based social satire by Tina Fey, came...
Things to do | In ‘The Teachers’ Lounge,’ one middle school as microcosm of a troubled world By Jocelyn Noveck January 25, 2024 at 9:45 p.m. What happens in the teachers’ lounge, anyway? When we were kids, that closed door seemed...
Things to do | Anthony Hopkins shines in ‘Freud’s Last Session’ By Jake Coyle January 11, 2024 at 9:41 p.m. “Freud's Last Session," starring Anthony Hopkins as Sigmund Freud, adds to a string of sterling...
Things to do | ‘The Color Purple’ is a stirring big-screen musical powered by its spectacular cast By Jake Coyle December 21, 2023 at 8:00 p.m. Exuberant performances from a cast led by Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson and Danielle Brooks...
Things to do | If this is goodbye, ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ keeps its trident high By Mark Kennedy December 21, 2023 at 7:52 p.m. It's perhaps appropriate that the latest Aquaman movie is about a lost kingdom. In many...
Things to do | A transformed Zac Efron gives his all in tragic, true-life wrestling tale ‘Iron Claw’ By Jocelyn Noveck December 21, 2023 at 7:56 p.m. It doesn’t take long to understand the level of commitment Zac Efron brings to “The...
Things to do | Ghosts and longing and love in ‘All of Us Strangers’ By Lindsey Bahr January 4, 2024 at 9:31 p.m. Andrew Scott plays a writer trying to write something about his dead parents in Andrew...
Things to do | A helicopter father flies his duck family south in ‘Migration’ By Jake Coyle December 21, 2023 at 7:54 p.m. Illumination, maker of “Despicable Me,” “Sing” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” has built its...
Things to do | Auto pioneer Enzo Ferrari gets a solid biopic, but it doesn’t make the heart race By Mark Kennedy December 21, 2023 at 8:02 p.m. Napoleon Bonaparte. Leonard Bernstein. Willy Wonka. Aquaman — there are a ton of Guy Movie...
Things to do | In harrowing ‘Zone of Interest,’ the Holocaust’s evils are cloaked in mundanities By Jocelyn Noveck January 18, 2024 at 9:19 p.m. It’s just a woman trying on a fur coat alone in her room, and sampling...
Things to do | Jeffrey Wright is brilliant in the smart and funny satire ‘American Fiction’ By Lindsey Bahr January 4, 2024 at 9:33 p.m. Jeffrey Wright’s Thelonious “Monk” Ellison is at the end of his rope at the beginning...
Things to do | Timothee Chalamet waltzes through the whimsical ‘Wonka,’ but Roald Dahl’s daring is missing By Jake Coyle December 15, 2023 at 12:22 a.m. The original 1971 “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” may have been a delicious dream,...
Things to do | Bradley Cooper’s ‘Maestro’ leaves many notes of Bernstein unplayed By Jake Coyle December 7, 2023 at 8:09 p.m. Bradley Cooper’s “Maestro,” a high-wire act of a biopic, leaps constantly between on stage and...
Things to do | La Jolla-based Spike and Mike festivals are acquired by Skybound Entertainment with plans for a revival By Ashley Mackin-Solomon December 7, 2023 at 5:59 p.m. Two animation events — and the collection amassed from them — with deep roots in...
Things to do | In ‘Poor Things,’ Emma Stone takes an unusual path to enlightenment By Lindsey Bahr December 15, 2023 at 12:09 a.m. It is sickly hilarious to make a movie in which so much consensual sex is...
Things to do | Swan song or not, Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘The Boy and the Heron’ is a master surveying his empire By Jake Coyle December 7, 2023 at 8:13 p.m. When Hayao Miyazaki's “The Boy and the Heron" premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival...
Things to do | In concert film ‘Renaissance,’ Beyonce offers glimpse into personal life during world tour By Jonathan Landrum Jr. November 30, 2023 at 8:39 p.m. LOS ANGELES — In Beyoncé’s concert film, she described her recent Renaissance World Tour as being run...
Things to do | ‘Eileen,’ a wonderful novel about an ‘invisible’ young lady, becomes a oddball film By Mark Kennedy December 7, 2023 at 8:17 p.m. Something strange has happened to Eileen Dunlop, and we don't just mean the plot of...
Things to do | Spinal Tap film sequel will include guest appearances by Paul McCartney, Elton John and Garth Brooks By George Varga November 28, 2023 at 1:22 a.m. Paul McCartney, Elton John and Garth Brooks are set to appear in the sequel to...
Things to do | Emerald Fennell chronicles a promising young man in audacious, shock-filled ‘Saltburn’ By Jocelyn Noveck November 22, 2023 at 2:05 a.m. Two years ago Emerald Fennell stood on the Oscars stage hoisting her writing trophy for...
Entertainment | Think they’ve seen it all? Holiday gift ideas for the movie lover who wants more By Lindsey Bahr December 4, 2023 at 12:11 a.m. It’s been a wonderful year at the movies for cinephiles, but what do you get...
Things to do | Disney’s musical fairy tale ‘Wish’ is beautiful, but lacking magic By Lindsey Bahr November 22, 2023 at 2:08 a.m. Walt Disney Animation's "Wish" is stunning to look at with textured and rich watercolor-inspired animation...
Things to do | In ‘Napoleon,’ the emperor has no clothes but plenty of ego By Jake Coyle November 22, 2023 at 2:10 a.m. For such a famed historical figure, Napoleon has made only fleeting appearances in movies since...
Things to do | Taika Waititi’s ‘Next Goal Wins’ is a sweet, frothy diversion but no knee slide By Mark Kennedy November 16, 2023 at 8:11 p.m. In “Next Goal Wins,” a soccer coach comes from far away to lead a hapless...
Things to do | Nicolas Cage finds fame to be highly overrated in chillingly funny ‘Dream Scenario’ By Jocelyn Noveck November 30, 2023 at 8:36 p.m. Quick: What’s a good adjective for Nicolas Cage’s screen presence? Mercurial, perhaps? Volcanic? Volatile?How about...
Things to do | Iman Vellani is a scene-stealer in low-stakes ‘The Marvels’ By Lindsey Bahr November 9, 2023 at 6:53 p.m. The stakes feel immensely low in “ The Marvels,” and it’s not because this is...
Things to do | Matthew Broderick is the American everyman in La Jolla Playhouse’s ‘Babbitt’ By Pam Kragen November 5, 2023 at 2:01 p.m. Sometime after Donald Trump was elected in 2016 but before the pandemic arrived in 2020...
Things to do | In ‘Radical,’ an unorthodox teacher in a violent Mexican border town By Jake Coyle November 2, 2023 at 5:47 p.m. On their first day sixth grade, the students of Jose Urbina Lopez Elementary School in...
Things to do | A serene debut from Raven Jackson in ‘All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt’ By Lindsey Bahr December 29, 2023 at 2:31 a.m. Nature provides much of the soundtrack to “ All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt,” a...
Things to do | Locals shine at San Diego Asian Film Festival By David L. Coddon October 27, 2023 at 12:01 p.m. Local filmmaker Emory Chao Johnson’s history with the San Diego Asian Film Festival began a...
Things to do | Video game-to-horror flick ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ misfires badly By Mark Kennedy October 26, 2023 at 6:31 p.m. Just in time for Halloween comes “Five Nights at Freddy’s,” a video game adaptation with...
Things to do | Teen dreams and adult nightmares in Sofia Coppola’s ‘Priscilla’ By Jake Coyle November 2, 2023 at 5:47 p.m. Dreamily gazing at the album covers of Elvis Presley was not, statistically speaking, a rare...
Things to do | ‘Persian Version’ finds laughter, tears in Iranian American tale of resilient women By Jocelyn Noveck October 26, 2023 at 6:38 p.m. Let nobody say writer-director Maryam Keshavarz doesn’t know how to start a movie.The first time...
Things to do | A holiday movie with some bite in Alexander Payne’s ‘The Holdovers’ By Lindsey Bahr November 9, 2023 at 6:48 p.m. Alexander Payne brings audiences to a New England boarding school in 1970 in “ The...
Things to do | Scorsese’s epic ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ is sweeping tale of greed, richly told By Jocelyn Noveck October 19, 2023 at 7:34 p.m. There tends to be lots of fast talking and fast moving in Martin Scorsese films,...
Things to do | Familiar faces star in ‘To Fall in Love’ at San Diego International Film Festival By David L. Coddon October 13, 2023 at 12:01 p.m. In “Celebrating the Power of Film” (its 2023 theme), the 22nd San Diego International Film...
Things to do | Cinema Society of San Diego celebrates 40 years of movie magic By David L. Coddon October 13, 2023 at 1:19 p.m. As Andy Friedenberg, founder of the Cinema Society of San Diego, reflects on the organization’s...
Entertainment | The Lot movie theaters in San Diego reopen following an abrupt closure a week ago By Lori Weisberg October 13, 2023 at 6:39 p.m. The Lot movie theaters, which abruptly closed all four of their California locations nearly a...
Things to do | In the elated ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,’ every seat is the best seat in the house By Maria Sherman October 12, 2023 at 9:15 p.m. It opens with a clock counting down until show time — the dropped stomach, rollercoaster...
Things to do | New documentary recounts the ‘experimental’ early history of San Diego’s Patrick Henry High By Pam Kragen October 12, 2023 at 8:54 p.m. When Patrick Henry High School opened its doors in the Del Cerro neighborhood 55 years...
Things to do | In ‘Anatomy of a Fall,’ a sharp courtroom drama that will end relationships By Lindsey Bahr October 26, 2023 at 6:37 p.m. Of all the ways that a relationship can end, a fundamental disagreement about a work...
Things to do | ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ doesn’t desecrate the original but it won’t compel you By Jake Coyle October 5, 2023 at 6:27 p.m. There may be no holier ground in horror than “The Exorcist." As endlessly as William...
Things to do | Check out ‘The Royal Hotel’ but don’t linger in this subtle horror flick By Mark Kennedy October 5, 2023 at 6:24 p.m. “The Royal Hotel” is a horror movie but don't expect any jump-cuts, scary masks or...
Things to do | Her voice is lower, but Joan Baez has songs to sing and secrets to tell in new doc By Jocelyn Noveck October 12, 2023 at 6:32 p.m. Bob Dylan called it her “heart-stopping soprano,” and it’s true that when Joan Baez unleashed...
Things to do | Humans take a back seat in the stunning AI, sci-fi epic ‘The Creator’ By Lindsey Bahr September 28, 2023 at 7:54 p.m. The artificial intelligence in Gareth Edwards’ “ The Creator,” a visually magnificent if by-the-books epic,...